Imagine having had a nasty brush with a light to moderate case of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. The experience may have given you an epiphany about installing CO detectors at home for better forewarning in case of another emergency in the future. However, these devices are only as effective as how they are set up—there are effective ways to put CO detectors in your home for maximum coverage.

According to the International Association of Fire Chiefs, at least one CO detector should be installed at every floor of the house, but where exactly on the floor is the question. For instance, the detector should be active in your bedroom, where the loud alarm can rouse you while sleeping. Some experts suggest within ten feet of the door, which can give you enough time to scramble fast. Bathrooms are off-limits to CO detectors.

If a CO detector is to be set up in the kitchen, the device cannot be within 15 feet of any heat-operative appliances such as gas stoves. A detector should also be set up in the garage, as many homeowners tend to run their cars on idle for long periods of time, leading to a CO buildup.

Every winter, Salt Lake City homeowners call furnace repair services to complain about a cold living environment because of inadequate heating. They would learn from even the most reliable furnace repair specialists that such calls can actually be avoided with little fixes that can be done without the help of a professional.

True, fixing a furnace can be intimidating. That only makes familiarizing yourself with how it works vital. First, before diagnosing a problem, make sure that the thermostat is working. Check the temperature setting and make sure that it is switched to “heat” mode. It is easy to get confused with a thermostat's complicated settings, especially if you're dealing with one that is programmable. Don't let that stop you.

Second, make sure that the furnace filters are not clogged, as dirty filters are the most common culprits behind a faulty furnace. Lastly, even the most efficient furnaces shut off because of blockages in the form of debris or mold growth. If the hose of your furnace appears dirty, drain and clean it with a mixture of bleach and water to keep it from malfunctioning.

Assess your abilities to check and troubleshoot your furnace. If the listed measures do not fix your furnace, it is best to call noted service providers to repair your heating equipment.

Winter is one harsh season. This fact can be felt in Utah’s largest city, Salt Lake City, with temperatures there fluctuating to below-zero levels. Such extreme temperatures require Salt Lake residents to extensively use their furnace and heating systems. Frequent furnace usage during the harsh winter months eventually brings wear and tear, and will require the help of Utah furnace repair experts. Here are some of the things that one can do to maintain a gas furnace before calling in professional help: Pilot light The pilot light is the ignition source of many gas furnaces. It must be ensured that the pilot light is always on, or the furnace will not run. Make sure that the pilot opening is also clean, and that the settings will make sure that the pilot light will stay lit. If your pilot light has gone out, gas will not feed into the burner, even though all other systems in the furnace are functioning properly. If so, all you will need to do is re-light it.

http://www.esconow.com/2013/11/quick-guide-performing-furnace-repair-utah/

It seems like winter has set in early in Salt Lake City as temperatures have dropped to as low as 7 degrees Fahrenheit in the second week of November. You may have turned up your electric furnace so you and your family can get the warmth you need. With electric furnaces, you won't have to worry about running out of fuel or gas to keep them functioning, and you can have a peaceful and warm sleep all throughout the night—well, unless there is a sudden power outage in the city, which is unlikely, of course.

While a power supply that is filled to the brim (so to speak) at all times is the advantage that an electric furnace provides, like all the household devices that run on electricity, they are also prone to a few problems. For one, you may find yourself having to deal with an electric furnace that doesn't generate enough heat even when the settings are on the maximum and your home is well-insulated. When this happens, dirty and clogged filters can be the source of the problem.

A noisy furnace is also a likely problem that an electric furnace owner may encounter. This is not only bothersome, causing you and your family lack of essential sleep, it can also indicate bigger problems with the furnace. In this case, it’s best to call on a Salt Lake City furnace repair specialist to delve deeper into the source of the problem.

Some homeowners are not too knowledgeable about how certain devices and home appliances work. When their air conditioning or heating units suddenly malfunction, they probably wouldn’t know what to do. Fortunately, professional furnace repair experts who can fix the problem right away. Here are some important factors to consider when looking for a furnace repair technician.

License

It's always ideal to choose a licensed repairman who has undergone the necessary training and certification to prove his expertise. Just as a product goes through strict quality assurance tests before being certified for retail, so does a repairman go through a set of tests before qualifying for a license. The inability to produce this basic credential certainly does not inspire confidence.

Manufacturer's Affiliation

Reliable furnace repair companies are typically affiliated with reputable manufacturers. Such affiliations should prove helpful when your specific repair issues require the replacement of some parts. A manufacturer-affiliated repairman can use parts of certified quality. You can also be assured of the repairman’s skill level.

Customer Support Service

Another way to gauge the reliability of any furnace repair company is to check if their hotline is working. If someone answers and provides the information you need in a polite and smart manner, then you’ll know right away that the company is serious about providing quality service.

As any handyman would tell you, proper maintenance is still the best way to prevent mechanical problems in your furnace. What constitutes “proper maintenance” is an entirely different story, however, because some people tend to neglect simple things like cleaning and lubricating. Others may be wise enough to remember these two tasks, yet they might also not have the proper know-how.

In any case, furnace cleaning is a rather meticulous undertaking. Simply dusting off the filters and ports won’t be enough to remove all the grime and germs that the furnace has accumulated throughout the course of its service life. The device needs to be disassembled so that each component can be cleaned, especially the blower assembly which accumulates the greatest amount of dirt and grime.

Meanwhile, quite a lot of Utah residents also have to clean their furnaces because of inversion pollution during winter. Some areas like Salt Lake City get literally blanketed by air pollutants during bouts of cold weather, which results in an even greater density of particulates that need to be removed from furnaces.

Furnace motors also need to be lubricated annually to keep them in good condition. Non-detergent motor oil is commonly used, although people should avoid using all-purpose oil that isn’t optimized for furnace components. Depending on the manufacturer, some furnaces may be permanently lubricated and sealed, thus making regular lubrication unnecessary.

-        www.nytimes.com/2013/02/24/us/utah-a-nature-lovers-haven-is-plagued-by-dirty-air.html?_r=0 

One of the worst things that could happen during the winter is for your home furnace to break down or malfunction. It is, therefore, important to regularly maintain your furnace unit and to know just when to call in the professionals. Here are three tips for keeping your furnace burning even through the coldest day.

Regular Cleaning

Dirt is perhaps the biggest problem that could plague a furnace. At the very least, it would cause clogs that will reduce the heating efficiency of your unit; the worst-case scenario would be that you’ll have a broken furnace with possibly dangerous leaks.

Using Your Nose

Your nose is your first tool in diagnosing a gas leak in the house. If you smell concentrated amounts of gas, get out of the house as quickly as possible and alert the gas company or the fire department immediately. For small leaks around the furnace unit, you can try to locate the leak by putting a mixture of detergent along the line; wherever the mixture bubbles up, there's gas escaping.

Calling Professional Repair

If you suspect a problem that's beyond your skill scope, it is best to call in a professional repair company than to use trial-and-error to solve the problem. Safety first, after all.

A home furnace is indeed a very big boon to homeowners in colder areas, but only if it works properly. That said, always stay on top of furnace maintenance so you never experience serious problems.